14:6 The scorner 1 seeks wisdom but finds none, 2
but understanding is easy 3 for a discerning person.
18:15 The discerning person 4 acquires knowledge,
and the wise person 5 seeks 6 knowledge.
21:25 What the sluggard desires 7 will kill him, 8
for his hands 9 refuse to work.
21:26 All day long he craves greedily, 10
but the righteous gives and does not hold back. 11
81:11 But my people did not obey me; 13
Israel did not submit to me. 14
81:12 I gave them over to their stubborn desires; 15
they did what seemed right to them. 16
81:13 If only my people would obey me! 17
If only Israel would keep my commands! 18
4:11 Old and new wine
take away the understanding of my people. 19
‘Go to this people and say,
“You will keep on hearing, 20 but will never understand,
and you will keep on looking, 21 but will never perceive.
28:27 For the heart of this people has become dull, 22
and their ears are hard of hearing, 23
and they have closed their eyes,
so that they would not see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their heart
and turn, 24 and I would heal them.”’ 25
1 sn The “scorner” (לֵץ, lets) is intellectually arrogant; he lacks any serious interest in knowledge or religion. He pursues wisdom in a superficial way so that he can appear wise. The acquisition of wisdom is conditioned by one’s attitude toward it (J. H. Greenstone, Proverbs, 149).
2 tn Heb “and there is not.”
3 sn The Niphal of קָלַל (qalal) means “to appear light; to appear trifling; to appear easy.”
4 tn Heb “discerning heart.” The term “heart” is a synecdoche of part (= heart) for the whole (= person); cf. TEV, NLT “intelligent people.” By paralleling “heart” and “ear” the proverb stresses the full acquisition of knowledge. The “ear” listens to instruction, and the heart considers what is heard to acquire knowledge.
5 tn Heb “the ear of the wise.” The term “ear” is a synecdoche of part (= ear) for the whole (= person): “wise person.”
6 sn This line features a mixed metaphor: The “ear” is pictured “seeking.” The “ear of the wise” actually means the wise person’s capacity to hear, and so the wise are seeking as they hear.
7 tn Heb “the desire of the sluggard” (so ASV, NASB). This phrase features a subject genitive: “what the sluggard desires.” The term תַּאֲוַת (ta’avat, “desire; craving”) is a metonymy of cause. The craving itself will not destroy the sluggard, but what will destroy him is what the craving causes him to do or not to do. The lazy come to ruin because they desire the easy way out.
8 tn The verb תְּמִיתֶנּוּ (tÿmitennu) is the Hiphil imperfect with a suffix: “will kill him.” It is probably used hyperbolically here for coming to ruin (cf. NLT), although it could include physical death.
9 sn “Hands” is figurative for the whole person; but “hands” is retained in the translation because it is often the symbol to express one’s ability of action.
10 tn The construction uses the Hitpael perfect tense הִתְאַוָּה (hit’avvah) followed by the cognate accusative תַאֲוָה (ta’avah). It describes one who is consumed with craving for more. The verse has been placed with the preceding because of the literary connection with “desire/craving.”
11 sn The additional clause, “and does not hold back,” emphasizes that when the righteous gives he gives freely, without fearing that his generosity will bring him to poverty. This is the contrast with the one who is self-indulgent and craves for more.
12 tn Heb “keep” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV).
13 tn Heb “did not listen to my voice.”
14 tn The Hebrew expression אָבָה לִי (’avah liy) means “submit to me” (see Deut 13:8).
15 tn Heb “and I sent him away in the stubbornness of their heart.”
16 tn Heb “they walked in their counsel.” The prefixed verbal form is either preterite (“walked”) or a customary imperfect (“were walking”).
17 tn Heb “if only my people were listening to me.” The Hebrew particle לוּ (lu, “if not”) introduces a purely hypothetical or contrary to fact condition (see 2 Sam 18:12).
18 tn Heb “[and if only] Israel would walk in my ways.”
19 tn Heb “take away the heart of my people.” The present translation assumes that the first word of v. 12 in the Hebrew text is to be construed with the noun at the end of v. 11 (so also TEV, CEV, NLT).
20 tn Grk “you will hear with hearing” (an idiom).
21 tn Or “seeing”; Grk “you will look by looking” (an idiom).
22 tn Or “insensitive.”
23 tn Grk “they hear heavily with their ears” (an idiom for slow comprehension).
24 sn Note how the failure to respond to the message of the gospel is seen as a failure to turn.
25 sn A quotation from Isa 6:9-10.